•Thefollowingmaybeusefulwordsfordiscussingsci-fi films: ET(extraterrestrial)–acreaturefromsomewherethat isn’tEarth. UFO(UnidentifiedFlyingObject)–somethinginthesky thatwecannotidentify,ieitmaybeaflyingsaucerorit maybeaweatherballoonoracloud. AI(artificialintelligence)–athinkingmachine. Robot–anintelligentmachine,eganartificialcreature withAI. mutant–acreaturethathaschangedinsomewaysand isdifferentfromallothersofitsspecies. space station–asatelliteinspacewherespaceships candock. •Thetitleofthislesson The futurological conferenceis alsothetitleofasciencefictionbookbyStanislawLem, afamousPolishwriter. Reading Thisprogrammegivesdetailsonthemaintalksatthe 4 th InternationalFuturologicalConference.Theyareon renewableenergy;increasinglifespananditseffecton society;internetuse;prisonsinthefuture;automatic translation;timetravel;laserweaponsandtheirimpacton theworld. 1 •Askstudentstolookatthetext,butnottoreaditindetail. Elicitwhatitis(a conference programme)andwhatthe subjectoftheconferenceis(futurology).Ifyouhaven’t alreadytaughtit,askstudentstothinkwhat futurologymightmean(Answer: the study of the future). •Pointoutthatitems1–7aredifferenttalksatthe conferenceandthatthetitlesforthetalksaremissing. •Studentsreadthetitles(a–j)andfindthethreetitlesthey thinkwouldnotapplytothisconference. The three titles that don’t apply:b,e,j 2 •Studentsreadtheconferenceprogrammeandmatchthe titlestothetalks. 1h 2c 3d 4f 5i 6a 7g Answer j is incorrect because the talk is not about the invention of the laser but about its future use on satellites, perhaps in wars. 3 •Studentscompletethesentenceswiththemissingwords fromthebox. 1 source 2 energy 3 cures 4 theory 5 technology 6 Satellites 4 •Studentsstudytheprogrammeandselecttwoorthree talkstheywouldliketogoto. •Theycanworkinpairsandtelltheirpartnerabouttheir choice,givingreasons. What the lesson is about Theme Studying the future Speaking Pairwork discussion: talking about science fiction films Monologue: giving a thirty-second talk Reading 4 th International Futurological Conference. A conference programme: giving details about a conference on the future Grammar Predictions 1 (may, might & will) Pronunciation Contractions 2: ’ll (dark /l/) If you want a lead-in … Teach a key word: futurology •Writetheword astrologyontheboard.Askstudentswhat itmeans.(Theyshouldrememberfromthelastlesson.) Pointoutthatitismadeupof astrand ology.Elicitor explainthat -ology means‘studyof’,so astrologymeans ‘studyofthestars’ (astraisGreekfor star).Nowwriteup futurology andelicitwhatitmeans(studyofthefuture). Discussion starters Methodology Builder 15: Using Discussion starters, page 63 •Have you ever seen Star Trek ™ ?(popularUSsciencefiction TVseriesandfilms)or,nameaTVprogrammeorfilmthat ispopularlocally. Will life in the future be like that?•What other things will happen in the future? Will people travel in space? Will people travel in time? Will there be lots of robots? Will the world be better – or worse?•Is it possible to predict the future? Will there be more wars or fewer? Why? Will there be more crime or less?Speaking 1 •Pairwork.Studentsdiscussthethreequestions. •Thefilmsintheboxareallwell-knownsciencefiction films.Youmayprefertousethefirstquestionwiththe wholeclassandclearlyestablishtheterm science fictionanditspronunciation. •Youcouldpointouttostudentsthattheycanusethe presentsimpletensetonarratethestoryofthefilm(as practisedinlesson4C). Language & cultural notes: science fiction •Sciencefictionisagenreconcernedwithimagined futurelives,eventsandtechnology.Itoftenincludes journeysinspaceortime,meetingswithalienlife, alternativerealitiesandscientificadvances. NBIt’s/saɪəns ˈfɪkʃən/not/fɪktɪɒn/!Thetermcanbe shortenedto sci-fi – pronounced/saɪ faɪ/.(Don’tsay /sɪ fɪ/!) •Someotherfamoussciencefictionfilmsinclude: 2001 A Space Odyssey; Star Trek ™ ; The Fifth Element; X-Men; Minority Report; Blade Runner; Close Encounters of the Third Kind; AI; Solaris; Mars Attacks; ET; Stargate; Children of Men; WALL-E; Inception 100 8a The futurological conference
